On October 2, 2019, in Odesa, the family of Elena and Victor Pinchuk handed the property rights for apartments to the 24 Ukrainian sailors who had been released from the Russian captivity and returned to Ukraine. In June this year, businessman and philanthropist Victor Pinchuk, supported the initiative of Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to provide habitation to the 24 Ukrainian sailors and committed to buy them apartments in Odesa or its neighbour districts.

The new 59.71 square meters two-room apartments are part of a new building in an Odesa’s adjacent district, to be commissioned before the end of the year 2019. The residential complex infrastructure comprises areas for children and sports, a kindergarten and leisure zones, shops and a trade centre. The apartments’ numbers were picked by lot.

Addressing the sailors at the property certificate award ceremony, Victor Pinchuk said: “We have been waiting for your coming back to Ukraine. We really wanted to tell you: “Welcome home”. To your native country and also to a real home, the warm, comfortable, your own home. Therefore, the initiative by the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy was born and I supported it. It is our honour to tell you today: "Welcome home." In every sense of the word.”

“I want to thank you for your bravery, fortitude and moral courage. You are the real heroes. But I want also to say a few words about the heroes that were staying here: your mothers, wives and your families. Yes, formally, they remained free, but in reality, every day of uncertainty about you, your fate and your health condition kept them captive. News reports did not speak about them, they were not featuring on front pages, but they experienced all the horrors of captivity along with their sons, husbands and fathers from whom they did not hear anything. And even if all this time mothers and wives have been behind the scenes, today, bowing unto you we would like to thank your mothers and wives. The ones who waited and struggled for your liberation,” added Elena Pinchuk, founder of the Elena Pinchuk Foundation.

Lyudmyla Denysova, Ukrainian Parliament representative for human rights, also participated in the ceremony.